18.08.05
British Airways is said to be investigating whether any of its staff were bullied into joining a wildcat strike that caused flights chaos at Heathrow airport last week. Some employees have told the airline that they were intimidated into supporting an unofficial action.
The strike, which involved around 1000 ground crew saw more than 700 BA flights from Heathrow cancelled, hitting the travel plans of 113,000 passengers. BA chief executive Sir Rod Eddington condemned the strike as 'outrageous' and a 'body blow that defies belief'.
Eddington said : 'Never before have we had to cancel the entire operation at our worldwide base. Those who took unofficial industrial action at British Airways acted in an unlawful way.'
After the strike, the airline has set up a confidential phone hotline for staff to report their concerns. BA's managers said anyone proved to have bullied colleagues into walking out could be sacked.
Last week, aviation experts said BA could lose up to £40m as a result of the strike. As well as refunds and the loss of flight revenues, the airline was forced to pay for a heathrow hotel for passengers left stranded, including as many as 200 of still stranded yesterday.
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